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Toyota and Mercedes-Benz are top global car brands

Toyota & Mercedes-Benz are the Top Global Automotive Brands 2011 Interbrand, a branding consultancy, delivers a report on the world’s brands every year, and in 2011, despite recall woes and the devastation of the Japanese Tsunami, Toyota leads the automotive brands, with luxury car maker Mercedes-Benz just behind. Interbrand uses three measures to gauge how effective a brand is – performance of branded product, the brands ability to secure earnings and the role of the brand in purchasing decisions – to come up with a chart of the top 100 world brands. At the top of the tree are companies like Coca Cola, IBM, Microsoft and Google, but car brands do well with Toyota, Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Honda, VW, and Ford all making it in to the top 50.

Fiat Panda Cross comes to the UK

By Tom Richards Motor Industry 11 August 2008 13:04 Finally Fiat is launching the Panda Cross in the UK. It's essentially a plastic addenda-clad version of the existing Panda 4x4, but the Cross has so far only been available in mainland Europe. Like the exisiting Panda 4x4 it features a permanent four-wheel drive system and an electronic differential lock, so should you choose to take the fields home, traction won’t be a problem. But the Panda Cross also gets new round front and rear lights, chunky side sills in contrasting colours to the body, new bumpers, 15-inch alloys and a two-tone interior.

Saab says three new models are in the works

Saab says a new financial deal with Chinese companies Pang Da and Zhejiang Youngman Lotus gives it the cash to plan three new models. Saab's plan calls for: -- The 9-1, an entry-level car that has been known as the 9-2 until now. -- The 9-6 and the 9-7, which Saab says will be prestige vehicles.